Is This The Best Keyboard for a Developer?
An in-depth review of the Matias Ergo Pro, an affordable split ergo keyboard
If you’ve been following me for a while now, it should not be a surprise that I have somewhat of a preference for mechanical keyboards. Especially so if they’re split keyboards.
The ergonomic aspects of keyboards fascinate me, but what really gets me is the possibility of being more proficient in your day-to-day tasks thanks to the “right” keyboard.
I put the quotes around “right” because in the end, what is “right” for you doesn’t have to be right for me. It’s a well-known fact in the keyboard community that preference is king here.
So with that out of the way, a couple of weeks ago I set out to try Matias’ Ergo Pro split programmable keyboard and test if it’s a good option for developers.
Here’s what I found out.
But first, the disclaimer
Just so we’re all on the same page, my review unit was gracefully sent by my good friends at Matias.
I did reach out to them, because their keyboard intrigued me and I wanted to share my experiences with you.
So they were graceful enough to send me a review copy.
And with that out of the way, let’s get going with the review.
Matias Ergo Pro keyboard
The Matias Ergo Pro programmable split keyboard is a staggered TKL keyboard (meaning it has all the keys except the right numpad) that comes with some programmable keys and some extra ones to make your life easier.
It also sports a common double space bar (usually common on split keyboards) so you can hit space with whatever thumb you feel like it. And a couple of amazingly comfortable wrist rests.
You can see all of that in the picture above. What you’re not seeing however, are the 3 legs on each half. Making it possible for you to tent the keyboard up to 9 degrees. We’ll get into more details about this in a minute.
That said, let’s start with the review, and make sure you make it to the end, because I have a special thing for you at the end!
Reviewing the Matias Ergo Pro
So my aim is to understand how good of an ergo keyboard is the Matias Ergo Pro FOR DEVELOPERS.
Being a developer for the past 20 years, I think I have a pretty good idea of what we look for, so during my review process this is what I was focusing on:
- Ergonomics: As a developer, you’re typing most of the time you’re in front of a computer, so it’s pretty easy to get wrist pain, or carpal tunnel syndrome. I’ll be evaluating how the ergonomic features of the keyboard help with that.
- Performance: One key for performance when writing code, is your ability to use custom key bindings that work for your particular workflow. The Ergo Pro keyboard is meant to be programmable, so we’ll take that feature for a spin to see how much it can help us improve our workflow.
- Overall ease of setup: Especially if this is your first time getting a mechanical keyboard, it’s important to understand how easy it is to set it up and get going.
- Look & feel: Finally, while this is not specifically for devs, I really love using keyboards that not only look good, but also sound good. So we’ll also evaluate that as the final part of the process.
So let’s get started.
Ergonomics of the Matias Ergo Pro
As I already mentioned, developers are usually typing during working hours (and during side project hours, and during learning hours, etc, etc), so while we’re not the only ones, we tend to make a lot of use of the keyboard.
Because of that, it’s a lot easier for devs to get wrist pain or any of the common issues around wrong hand positioning. I’m not a doctor and I won’t pretend to be one, but if you’re experiencing wrist or finger issues/pain during extending working sessions, the lack of a proper ergo keyboard might be the cause of it.
So, how is the Ergo Pro in regards to ergonomics? Other than having it as part of its name, let’s see how ergo-focused this baby is:
Tenting/Tilting
A common feature to help you place your hands in a more comfortable position is the keyboard’s ability to tent and/or tilt. Through tenting, you’re able to interact with the keys without having to pronate your hands (rotate them so the palm looks down). This helps because pronating your hands causes the muscles and tissues in your forearm to reduce blood circulation, which turn can lead to fatigue and repetitive strain injuries.
To solve that, the Ergo Pro comes with three legs on each half, which allows you to have up to 9º tenting. While not a big angle, it still feels quite comfortable:
Here’s a picture taken from their website that exemplifies the 9º tenting angle:
You can also achieve negative tilting, which happens when the wrist side of the keyboard is higher than the finger part.
Usually, if you don’t have negative tilting, normal keyboards would cause you to have your hands in the following position:
Notice the hard angle your wrist is on, while you might not notice this at first, prolonged typing in this position might cause some serious damage.
However, if you go the negative tilting route, you’re able to position your hands and wrists in a much more natural way.
Here’s a very rough idea of what that looks like:
On top of that, the combination of negative tilting and the wrist pad provided by Matias with their keyboard makes this a very natural-feeling position to work.
Split layout
Another very common feature of ergo keyboards is their split layout. The fact that you have two sides for this keyboard allows you to separate both halves as much as you want.
Non-split keyboards will cause your hands to be close together, forcing your back muscles to stretch more than usual. This can, eventually, cause back pain, hence the reason why many ergo keyboards provide a split layout.
The Ergo Pro is no different, in fact, the keyboard comes with two different cables to connect the halves together. One for those who want to slowly ease into the split (the cable is quite short) and one for those who can’t have enough space between the halves.
Mind you, the cables could be nicer looking, but from a functional POV, they work just fine.
Key layout
The staggered vs columnar debate on ergonomic keyboards is a big one. The Ergo Pro comes with a standard staggered layout, which means each row of keys is slightly staggered compared to the other. This actually comes from the typewriting machines, and most of the usual keyboards have it.
This is not great to minimize finger movement, however, it’s perfect for people who want to ease into the world of ergonomic keyboards. Through the staggered layout, a newcomer will have an easier learning curve.
The same goes for the lack of a keywell. While a keywell will indeed reduce finger movement (due to the slightly reduced distance between keys for each specific finger), this particular layout can be really hard to adapt to some typists, especially if touch typing (typing without looking at the keyboard) is not an option.
Overall ergonomic valuation
From the ergonomic POV, the Ergo Pro is perfect for newcomers to the ergo world.
It has the basic features required in the form of tenting/tilting and split layout to provide some immediate benefits. And it doesn’t have the advanced ergo features that only some types of users would appreciate (columnar layout and keywell).
If I had to give points, I would give it an 8 out of 10: solid for newcomers.
Performance
At this stage, we have to understand how the previous points and the programable capabilities factor into making you a more performant developer.
The question is:
How much faster can you type, and create code, thanks to this keyboard?
As I already mentioned, the ergo features that would improve your typing speed are not present, so we’re already losing some points in that regard.
How about the programable side of it? The Ergo Pro is advertised to be programmable, but is it?
Many custom keyboards allow you to fully remap the entire set of keys to work however you want, the Ergo Pro doesn’t.
Instead, it provides a set of programmable keys, the cool part is that you don’t need extra software to do it. Through a combination of keys, you can put the keyboard on “recording mode” for one particular key, and record a set of keystrokes to be triggered when you press one key.
That means you can potentially save your own code snippets inside the keyboard.
For example, let’s say I want to create a new JavaScript function whenever I press the right spacebar when I’m on VIM.
I’ll just put the keyboard on “recording mode”, then I’ll hit:
1- ESC
2- i
3-
function [name]([params]) {
}
4- UP Arrow
5- UP Arrow
6- CTRL + Right ArrowSo now whenever I press the right spacebar:
- I’ll go into visual mode.
- I’ll then go into insert mode.
- I’ll write a basic function template.
- Finally, I’ll put the cursor in the right place to name the function.
This is definitely an interesting way of helping you write code faster. While there are no concepts of layers (like with other custom keyboards), you do have a certain level of control over how the keyboard behaves.
You also have a set of special keys on the left half to perform copy, paste, undo and cut text with a single press of a button.
The good thing about these keys is that you don’t need to press CTRL + something to trigger them.
However, the bad part is that they’re not located somewhere easy to reach, there is a significant hand movement required to reach them. If you’re not part of the group of developers who want to minimize their hand movement, these keys might be perfect for you. If on the other hand, you’re a heavy Vim user who doesn’t like to even think about using a mouse, let alone move your hands off the home row, then these keys are not going to be useful to you.
So all in all, when it comes to developer performance, I would give the Ergo Pro a solid 7 out of 10: you get some performance improvements but they’re not enough for developers.
Overall ease of setup
Is the Ergo Pro easy to get going with?
The answer is a resounding YES.
There is no need to install any software, or configure anything, this is a true Plug&Play keyboard.
And on top of that, whatever programming you can do on the keyboard doesn’t really require any extra software (like it’s the case with most other keyboards).
This is all to say that the entire experience provided by the Ergo Pro from Matias can be seen just by plugging it into your computer.
So in this regard, I give it a 10 out of 10: a true Plug&Play keyboard.
Look and feel of the Ergo Pro
The final section of this review is really the least important for many developers, but for me, a good keyboard doesn’t just have to make me proficient, it also has to look and sound nice whenever I use it.
And in the case of the Ergo Pro, it only checks one of those marks.
Take a look at the typing test and then I’ll explain:
As you can see, and from the pictures I’ve already shared above, the look of the Ergo Pro is great. The all-black design and the uneven split makes it look slick and modern. I love how the keyboard looks.
But the way it sounds is a different story. This keyboard is using Matias’ own switches, they call them Quiet Click Mechanical Switches, and while they might be quiet when used individually, the overall sound of the keyboard is not great.
Can it be improved? Absolutely! The keyboard itself is not hot-swappable though, so if you want to lube the switches, you’ll have to unsolder them one by one. Also, probably applying a tape mod, and taking a closer look at those stabilizers wouldn’t hurt.
Notice that if you make any modifications to this keyboard in order to mod it, you’ll void the warranty. So do it at your own risk.
That said, if you’ve modded keyboards before, then this might be a good one for you, because it’s one of the most affordable split ergo keyboards on the market and with a couple of mods, you can make it sound incredible!
Finally, when it comes to looks and feel, I would give the Ergo Pro a solid 6 out of 10: the looks only take it so far, it needs to improve the way it sounds as well.
The final verdict (and a little surprise!)
In the end, after several weeks of using the Ergo Pro from Matias, I gotta admit that while it’s not the “perfect” keyboard for me as a developer, it definitely has some nice features that could make it perfect for some of you out there!
Granted, it also has some room for improvement, but it’s also on the affordable side of split keyboards on the market right now, so let’s remember that before we compare it with others that double its price.
The overall score for the keyboard, from my POV is a solid 8 out of 10: definitely worth a try, especially if you’re looking for an entry-level keyboard in the split keebs worlds.
And to help you get into it, the good folks from Matias created a custom discount code. Go to their shop and use the promo code “FERNANDO” to get a 10% discount on your own Ergo Pro or any other product within the “Ergonomics & Specialized” collection.
Or use this link and get the discount directly without having to use the promo code yourself.
Keep in mind the promo code only works for the USA & Canada store, if you’re not there, you’re out of luck (sorry!)
Also, the promo code is only valid until February 29th, 2024, so if you’re still in time, hurry up and use it!
Have you tried the Ergo Pro before? Or are you going to? Leave a comment and share your experience!
